After being turned down last year for help through “Rural Connections”, an Ontario program set up to help local communities get the benefit of Internet services, county officials are set to try again, and are more optimistic of success this time around.
Middlesex CAO Bill Rayburn told county council members last week the county is applying for funds in a new round of the program this year, and is in the midst of compiling information on the exact status of broadband accessibility across Middlesex.
“We think we can prove we have less than 75 percent coverage through much of rural Middlesex,” he said. The goal of the project would be to increase that to as much as 99 percent coverage.
Depending on the scope of what is needed, he said the county could be applying for as much as $3 million from the province.
A request for information package has been circulated to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) across Middlesex as county officials gather information needed for the grant application. As well, officials are inviting county residents currently without broadband access to visit the Middlesex website and give their locations so pockets without broadband coverage can be identified.
“We know anecdotally about where coverage doesn’t exist,” said Mr. Rayburn, “but we need proof for the province. We also know coverage promised by ISPs is often larger than what it turns out to really be.”
The funding application will be submitted by Sept. 18, with a decision by the province possible by November.
County council already has $400,000 in this year’s budget for a broadband project, after having decided to go ahead on its own after it was rejected by the province last year.
This time around, Mr. Rayburn said he is more optimistic about getting funding because the guidelines in this year’s program are more tailored to the county’s situation. As well, he said, many communities are waiting until the second round of grant applications scheduled for next February, since it is often tough to get the necessary work done through the summer months.
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Quelle/Source: The Age Dispatch, 21.08.2008
